The 'Melon!

[60seriesguy]

Where I come from, all Land Cruisers have names, that's just the way it is...So when I first saw my "new" UZJ100 in the driveway, my thought was "she's big, green, and round"....A Watermelon! So that's the name of this new-to-me '99 UZJ100 that I scored a couple of months ago, and that I will be building into an expedition rig. I've only done minute mods so far, concentrating on making sure it's mechanically up to spec, but I am planning some heavy-duty mods, she's got to be ready for an expedition in March and my free time is short (hence my absence from the forum for some time). Bought her in Scottsdale, AZ, a 1-owner truck that must have been a lightly-used (low miles) and oft-garaged (pristine paint) commuter rig (only the driver seat appears to have been used). 77K miles, immaculate interior (except for the leather on the steering wheel, which was abraded) and exterior.

So far, I've checked brakes, axles, transmission, cooling system, suspension, motor. I've also de-blinged it (had the hideous gold trim package), put a Wheelskins cover on the steering wheel, the non-US "cubby" for the center console, and rubber mats all around. Removed the factory roof rack and some nerf bars.

Planning steel wheels with 295's, front and rear bumpers, dual battery, winch, extended fuel tank, INTI rack, snorkel, lights, cargo drawers, sliders, suspension, skidplate.

Also planning to modify my M416 expedition trailer to fit the new tow rig (here we go again...).

Anyway, here's a shot of the 'melon. It's the first time I've owned a stock Land Cruiser in more than 20 years and it won't stay like that much longer....

I'll report back periodically as the project moves.

Cheers!

Henry Cubillan

 

[calamaridog]

Henry,

It's a great looking truck and I'm looking forward to your build up. Have you found an source for steel wheels yet?

 

[Mike S]

Henry,

Glad to see that you are back in the game. But IFS? Maybe the age of the 100 series is here, and I need to dump my 80?

Mike

 

[OverlandZJ]

I had been wondering where you were Henry, saw you sold your beloved "Princess" and thought perhaps you were out of the game.

I look forward to the 100 build, i'm sure it'll be an awesome rig.

 

[24HOURSOFNEVADA]

Very nice Henry...I'm looking for a 100 as we speak. At least she's green in tribute to the princess.

 

[Dirty Harry]

Does INTI make 100 series stuff Henry or are you going to modify an 80 series rack?

 

[60seriesguy]

Thanks, guys! Out of the game?? Never! I've been a Cruiserhead and explorer for more than 20 years, it's part of my core!

I originally set out to buy an 80 series, but after a 4-month search, my frustration was sky-high. The market for 80s is red-hot and I saw a lot of high-mile, rough-interior trucks or over-priced rigs. The IFS is an unknown factor for me, but I'll play it by ear. Heck, the automatic, the V8, the fuel injection, all of those are unknown factors to me as well! For what I'm building, I think the 100 is a great choice. I will sacrifice a bit at the tougher end of the trails, but let's face it, I find myself doing less and less of that as the years go by.

And I did find the steel wheels, more on this later....

 

[60seriesguy]

Does INTI make 100 series stuff Henry or are you going to modify an 80 series rack?

When I sold the Princess, I kept the INTI rack, since I'd already modified it to suit my application and replacing it would have been expensive. My plan is to make custom crossbars/mounts, then remove the INTI's feet and bolt it directly to the crossbars. The width should work, and I know the length does. Venezuela never got the 100 series, so there are no off-the-shelf INTI racks for it (although INTI has made a few for independently-imported 100's).

 

[gillti]

Cannot Wait to see this build up. I'm a huge fan of your sixty and I know this will be a lot of fun to watch. Congrats. . .:chowtime:

 

[goofiefoot]

Hey Henry! Long time, no see. Didn't realize you sold the 60. I've been out of the loop for a while.

Looking forward to seeing the new one out and about!

 

[FourByLand]

Very impressed with your previous rig, so I too look forward to seeing this one take off!

eepwall:

 

[Box Rocket]

Hey good to see and here some news from you Henry. Rig looks great. Can't wait to see what you do with it.

 

[Cruiser99]

welcome, fellow 99'er!

 

[mountainpete]

Henry,

Looking foward to following the build! Are you going to chronicle it in Overland Journal as well?

Pete

 

[60seriesguy]

OK, I've been trying to get organized and finally crunched up a quick spreadsheet of the modifications list. This time I was smart and didn't really add a "total" line, I don't really want to know! Starting in October, I'll be tackling -in no particular order- the following list. I don't have a time-frame, but I think it will happen relatively quickly (at least, I hope it does).

Armor:

- Front bumper (off-the-shelf, modified)
- Rear bumper (full custom)
- custom skidplate
- Sidebars (probably custom, still open)

Drivetrain:

- OME suspension
- ARB front locker
- Steel wheels (OEM)
- Goodyear Wrangler MT/Rs


Expedition:

- Cargo drawers (probably custom)
- Snorkel
- Dual battery system (wide open)
- Extended range fuel tank (probably LongRanger)
- INTI expedition rack (done)
- 45qt. Engel (done)
- lights (wide open...IPFs, maybe?)
- Warn M10000 winch (done, but will add synthethic rope)
- CB/HAM radios (wide open)
- Onboard air (wide open)
- Onboard shower (custom)


Interior:

- Seat covers
- Assorted mounts (flashlights, map lights, fire extinguisher, radios, inverter, secure box, etc...)
-GPS + notebook (wide open)

I think that's pretty much it for now. It's on the cosmetic side that I'm going away from the usual 100 series builds I've seen in the forums, but I'm still mulling how far a departure I'm going to take.

I'm accumulating parts for both the 'Melon and the trailer over the next few months (Sept/Oct is my busiest time of the year at work so not much progress to be expected) and then will start cranking down on modifications as the winter sets in.

Like I said, it's my first buildup in almost 20 years. The goal is a reliable, long-distance hauler that can be relied upon to travel vast distances in relative comfort and that can handle up to medium trails without difficulty.

I'll be posting back here as the project evolves.